Klavia Okeano
The Grand Duchy of Keymon was founded in 2103 by a band of Dolgarian travellers led Bryce Leigh. It was founded as a neutral, free trade and liberal state and maintains that tradition today. It is the smallest nation in Terra both in terms of size and population. History Early History The island of Maddog on which the Grand Duchy of Keymon is situated rose out of the sea at around 2093. Geologists have recently ascertained that this was due to intense lava activity in the region forcing land masses to rise to the surface. The majority were small and very rocky meaning that little vegitation could grow and human dwelling impossible. However Maddog, as well as Monkey Island, existed as exceptions and were much more flat in structure as well as being home to much more fertile soil. Growth was quick and it is estimated that over half of the current vegitation of Maddog grew within the first 20 years of the islands existence. When the volcanic movement pushed Maddog to the surface it did, however, not leave the entire island fit for man to live on and situated at the southern tip of the island the imposing figures of the Double D mountains can still be found. Early travellers to the island included Likaton pirates looking for the mystical land of Pewtri-Yo, however upon seeing that there was no buried treasure of colonies of virgins to be found they soon left. More permanant settlers included indigenous inhabitants of Majatra who sailed north on hand carved canoes. These travellers were motivated by the growing industrialisation of their homeland as well as the dream of creating a new nation which would place them at the top of the social order as opposed to the whites and arabs that now dominated Majatra. Furthermore this was also during the time of The Terror in Deltarian history meaning that emigration from around that area was further increased. This effectively began the long standing tradition of Keymon being home to Deltarian refugees. The Majatran travellers soon established small villages in the forest areas of the island as well as carving makeshift temples into the rocks of the Double D mountains. In 2103 however the whole landscape of Maddog, soon the be named Keymon, was changed when a band of travellers from Dolgaria, armed with the latest in technology and led by Bryce Leigh I landed on the island. Founding a nation "About the time Keymon became a country, Dolgaria was going through a period of casting off the yolk [''sic] of Communism and re-establishing our Monarchy. Throughout this period of change, the leftwing, semi-regulatory market parties remained in power. Dolgaria had always been home to a capitalist population but with more Regulatory parties than Capitalists. Only after our rise to power in 2140 was a free-market party really dominant, but even then regulators still remained in the majority. Only briefly in the 2140s and 2160s was this not the case and only recently have we managed to pass real laissez-faire bills, which we suspect will soon be repealed. So, seeing as the country was founded by Capitalists you can see what caused them to leave Dolgaria."'' ''-- The Liberty and Prosperity Party of Dolgaria at the first Congress on the linguistic, ethnic and religious makeup of Keymon.'' --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Leigh family extends far back in Dolgarian history to the feudal era when they effectiely controlled the whole of the island region of Karzon. Following the collapse of the old order and the emergence of the Empire this power was diminished but they were still able to hold sway over many of the regional goings-on. However Communism soon grew in popularity in Dolgaria and the Leigh family soon found themselves prime targets for local revolutionaries eager to make a name for themselves. Much of the Leigh farmland was either burnt down by mobs or captured by its workers and collectivised under the barrel of a gun: "Every remnant of the old order must die! Take the factories, liberate the people and destroy the feudal lords, the Reijerds, the Sewqons, the Leighs, they must all go!" - Supreme Soviet Party Chairman The Leighs also suffered from the fact that they were of Dolgar ethnicity akin the majority of mainland Dolgaris. Karzon however was and is predominantly of Karzonic ethnicity as well as being home to a strong independence movement. Thus many Karzonic citizens were swept up in the Communist anti-old order movement as a way to settle old scores against the 'Dolgar imperialists. This of course added to the danger the Leighs were in. As such the decision was made for the family to move away from their ancestral homeland and find a new, promised land. Initially the plan was for everyone to board the Leigh fleet and universally make their way out of the country however this was thwarted when the mother of the family proclaimed that she would never live in, "a land of anti-Dolgar communist bastards". This was due to her belief that the whole of Terra had now gone red and nowhere was safe and at least in Dolgaria they had property. As such a split in the Leigh family occured with the vast majority deciding to stay in Karzon but the eldest son Bryce Leigh sticking to the original plan. By now however he did not have access to the family fleet and had to enlist the suppport of fellow ex-landlords seeking a new, capitalist order. Eventually along with 50 other men and women he was able to leave Dolgaria and seek a new home. To be continued... To deal with boat trip to Keymon/possible battles encountered on the way/reasons for not stopping at Lodamun, Telamon (see map), to deal with: Arrival/building of towns, buildings etc/forming of KRP The emergence of Party Politics This section deals with the time period beginning with the emergence of the Manifest Destiny party in 2108 but focussing more on the years 2111 (the first election lost by the KRP) and the subsequent years. As this section will theorectically extend from 2108 to 2158 it can be split up into seperate sections. Initially beginning with the capitalist hegemony it can then move on to the building of the Keymon left and also the moving of certain powers from the Grand Duke to the Assembly.' The Fascist Era The National Front was founded in Keymon some time in the early 2240's by far right activists unhappy with the way the nation was being governed. What began as a minor pressure group soon became a national phenomenom when the AM Red Star Movement were given cabinet positions in July 2151. This spearheaded a Keymon wide outburst of anti-Communist sentiment which was coupled with continued opposition to the lax immigration and refugee policies of the nation. Essentially the party ran upon the official slogan of "Putting Keymon first". By the 2158 elections it had become clear that the people of the island had become dissilusioned with the traditional parties and radically propelled the National Front to the largest party in the Assembly. Throughout subsequent elections it continued to maintain and even gain support culminating in the dramatic coup of 2181 when it swept the board and took over all cabinet positions. It was subsequently able to establish a two year 'legal dictatorship' in which opposition parties were consistently harrased and sometimes violently attacked by NF militias and the cabinet, under the control of Alex Keymon was able to exercise complete control. The new government immediately began making its prescene felt with extreme reactionary policy directives eliminating much of the liberal makeup of the Duchy that the older parties had spent so long trying to create. Aside from taking complete control of the judiciary system thereby condemning many political opponents to death via the claim of 'treachery', the government also took complete control of the Church of Keymon through the National Front Religious Manifesto (NFRM) of June 2182. Not only did this allow the state to appoint religious ministers but it also forced Christianity on to all schools, required individuals to dress by religious clothing and made membership of the Church of Keymon mandatory. This latter proposal subsequently allowed the governemtn to pursue its goals of mass murder of the Jewish and Zen Buddhist populations of the nation. Yet by far the most dramatically change made by the National Front was to introduce slavery and the slave trade to the nation. In an era when many nations were casting off the chains of slavery the NF took a step backwards and rounded up all prisoners (criminal and political) as well as religious and ethnic minorities and forced them to work in the mines and the fiels of Keymon. During this time opposition to the government was impossible as all other political parties had been declared illegal and the Grand Duke put under armed guard in his royal quarters. However as the fascist regime moved into its second year of power minor protests began to spring up around the nation spearheaded by the newly formed Christian Democrat party as well as civil rights and pro-freedom activists. Furthermore they were also joined by extreme monarchists unhappy about the new Director Generals proposed move to eradicate the role of the Grand Duke. The protests soon began to spread and in January 2282 a mass week long strike gripped the nation, paralysing the national infrastructure and, following a revolt in the states armed forces, the government was forced to cecede power and call new elections. Alex Keymon's "thousand year Empire of the Duchy" had collapsed in less than two. In the new elections the National Front was permitted to stand and due to intense political intimidation was able to maintain a significant number of seats. However by now all power had been handed over to the Grand Duke and the laws of the previous government repealed. What remained of the NF soon lost public support and by the late 2280's had entirely collapsed as a political party. The Christian Democrat government that was elected after the National Front was overthrown ruled Keymon peacefully and managed to gain a supermajority in the Assembly on the eve of the First Civil War. The Insurgency (1st Keymon Civil War) In 2221 a insurgency was launched by the Red Star Movement as well as the Duchy's People's Party/Duchy's People's Army in an attempt to topple the government. While the RSM was primarily concerned with the establishment of a Communist Republic the DPP/DPA's motives were more explicitly anti religion and it embarked upon many acts of anti-religious terrorism. One such event was the now notorious Night of Flames in which several churches were burned by the DPA, led by Mr.Rocafella and Tha Doggfather, the former who was quoted as saying "Let the churches of Keymon burn" as well as "More churches will burn before the night is out." Other DPA attacks included a hit and run attack on one of Keymon's Naval ports, where DPA leader Tha Doggfather ordered the crucifixion of all of Keymon's dead marines and further engagements with a now military style police force. Death threats to the CD leader Rufio Carmichael followed these events and Mr.Rocafella, another DPA leader, led mobs on religious cleansing missions through Keymon. However, the DPA came up against a resiliant CD government and the conflict came to a stalemate. The DPP and CD then reached a ceasefire agreement, in which the two DPA leaders Mr.Rocafella and Tha Doggfather were handed over to the government for trial before the Assembly and the DPA was illegalised. The ceasefire papers were signed in May 2225 and in September 2225 a power sharing government was established as terms of the agreement. The pair of Mr. Rocafella and Tha Doggfather were found guilty by the Assmebly, much to the disappointment of the DPP and were later sentenced to life enprisionment, after the DPP had managed to abolish the death penalty in Keymon. The DPP returned to fighting the CD through the political system but failed to gain much support and left Keymon for a spell in The Dolgarian Empire, before returning to Keymon once more at the request of The Party for National Reform and Freedom. The Likatonia Crisis (2nd Keymon Civil War) The Likatonia Crisis essentially began with the emergence of the Likaton Fascist Front and its plan for a Greater Likatonia. This further intensified in the November 2258 election to the Convocation of Likatonia when the LFF and its main ally, The Freedom Movement of Likatonia were able to once again gain a majority. Meanwhile by the time of the December 2255 in Keymon, the Duchy's People's Party had reformed and although the DPA was now illegal, they instead formed the clandestine Armed Guard of Keymon, seen as a response to the Christian Democrat dismantling of the national army. The AGK grew quickly in size as well as capturing military equipment including a jet plane. By now the Chrisitan Democrats, fearful of another insurgency, were in direct talks with the LFF and following the failure of the Kihnterha Conference to accomplish anything, on 31st August 2260, they voluntarly invited the Likatonian army to enter Keymon and crush the AGK. In addition to this the administration which, following the declaration of a state of emergency and a 'dawn till dusk' curfew, was now essentially led by a Triumverate encompassing Jaques Phargle of the Christian Democrats, Virri Shotten of the Just as Silly party and Tab Yero, of the Democratic Industrialists, began cracking down on political opposition. In what has now become known as 'Black November' the Triumverate arrested Minister of the Interior Alice Watterson, Minister of Finance Simon Dynamis and Minister of Education and Culture Samuel "Sonny" Delgado. Furthermore Grand Master Shih Kao of the Zen Collective was arrested and the ZC, the KGP and the DPP (which had now reorganised themselves as the Keymon Sovereignty Movement) were declared terrorist organisations. In addition to this the Christian Democrats brough foward and voted yes in a resolution to allow Keymon to become part of Greater Likatonia. When Grand Duke Bryce Leight VII spoke out against this, his palace was surrounded and he was cut off from the outside world. A notably bloody event in this time was the Likaton airforce bombing of the third largest Zen Buddhist temple in the nation, The House of Nirvana and the deaths of five priests, including the the Supreme Patriach of Keymon His Holiness Tep Vong, the leader of the Official Zen Committee of Keymon (OZCK) and head of the Keymon Buddhist population. Following a large number of AGK raids, now supported by military intervention from Selucia, Hobrazia and international volunteers, as well as defeat in the November 2261 Convocation elections, the Likaton army was forced to withdraw from Keymon. This, however, left the battle between the Keymon Sovereignty Movement and the AGK against the Unitary List and the army raging on, eventually reaching Keymon City and the Assembly square by late November 2261. The December election proved little conclusion as the votes were practically split between the Unitary List parties and those of the Keymon Loyalists Agreement, creating a political deadlock. Fighting further continued whilst two more elections took place in January 2264 and May 2267, both under the State of Emergency details. Following the 2264 election a Unitary List cabinet became a possibility yet the Just as Silly party fell into collapse due to leadership disputes. Yet while by May 2267 the AGK had been effectively defeated by the army, the Duchy's People's Party disbanded and the Zen Collective banned, the May election showed a shift away from the Unitary List parties and a cabinet was formed in the same month encompassing the Loyalist Agreement parties of the Liberal Representatives and the Keymon Green Party as well as the newly formed Ghetto Thugs Inc. (Inner City Coalition). Additionally this cabinet immediately ended the state of emergency, legalised the Zen Collective and in 2269 freed Shih Kao. Subsequently the Minister of Security during the civil war, Jonah Mallory was arrested and put on trial for treason, war crimes and genocide. Politics Grand Duke The Head of State of Keymon is known as His Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Keymon, Prince Regent of Maddog, Lord Protector of Monkey, Earl of Karzon, Commander In Chief of the Royal Forces and High Deacon of the Church of Keymon or in short Grand Duke. All Grand Dukes come from the Keymon Ruling Party and take the hereditary title of Bryce Leigh. The History of the Grand Dukes can be seen below: Director General The Head of Government of Keymon is the Director General. The Director General is responsible for chairing the state cabinet and government as well as representing the nation on an international level. Cabinet The Cabinet of Keymon is appointed by a vote in the Legislative Assembly and then ratified by the Grand Duke, however the latter is essentially a formality and the Grand Duke has never refused to ratify a cabinet. The cabinet is chaired by the Director General and the current make up of the cabinet is as follows: Legislative Assembly The current Legislative Assembly of Keymon was built in the 2110's to cater for the emergence of party politics in the nation. Deputies are elected by a nationwide vote in accordance with universal suffrage for all those over the age of 18. The Assembly was damaged during the 2nd Keymon Civil War and it is rumoured that plans are afoot to build a new one. To Zen Nationalists the Legislative Assembly is not the true governing body of the nation and power should instead be placed in a 'Third Maddog Congregation', following on from the first on of 2103 and the second one of 2184. However in practical terms this would simply equate to a name change for the current Assembly and in any case this has not stopped Zen Nationalists serving as Assembly Deputies. The current make up of the Assembly is as follows: Neutrality Perhaps the best known aspect of Keymonian politics is its patented neutrality. Beginning with the Treaty of Key Mon it was immediately recognised that such a small state would be unable to protect itself militarily against its larger neighbours and so for the sake of safety it was better to declare Neutrality. Throughout the years this has been greatly expanded, most notably through the Keymon Neutrality Agreement which is currently ratified by 27 nations making it the force most ratified treaty on Terra. The neutrality of Keymon has allowed it to effectively govern its own lands as well as allowing it to emerge as a Terra wide nation of trade and commerce. The idea of Keymonian neutrality was further expanded in the later 23rd Century when the 'pacifist coalition' of the Axis Mundi Zen Collective, Christian Democrats and Democratic Industrialits pushed through the complete abolition of the nations military capacity as well as promoting the Keymon Defence Agreement which requires other nations to defend the island if it is invaded. Geography The Grand Duchy of Keymon is situated on the island of Maddog in the Maddog Ocean. It is located in between the continents of Artania and Seleya with Makon to the north and Majatra to the south. More specifically it is in between the nations of Hobrazia and Likatonia and is considered to be the only continent-less nation is Terra. Keymon also holds juristiction over Monkey Island which can be found just to the south of Maddog which, despite its small size, is very sparsely populated and largely ignored by the outside world. Major Towns Keymon is essentially considered to be based around four major towns, although a number of small villages also exist. The four towns are all connected by the train network. Keymon City: This is the capital city of Keymon and is the main business capital of the nation, being home to a large number of banks. It is also the location of the Legislative Assembly as well as the home of the national race track and a large number of brothels. Penrod: This picturesque fishing town was the first to be founded in Keymon and is still the home of the Palace of the Grand Duke. It is also where the majority of the Zen Buddhist population of the nation are located, including the Supreme Patriarch himself, and the closest of the major towns to the Bryce Leigh National Forest. Laddon: Found at the foothills of the Double D mountains, Laddon is the industrial heartland of Keymon and is where the majority of the national production takes place. The city itself would not attract much tourist attention if it were not for the high level of casinos that exist in it. This, however, does not detract from the high levels of air pollution found in the area. Hen Swung: The Christian capital of Keymon, this is home to the largest church in the nation as well as being where theological decisions take place. Aside from this it is a popular tourist destination due to its small streets and regular markets. Demographics Religion * 57% Christian (Church of Keymon: 81%, Church Of Keymon (Reformed): 11%, Terran Catholic: 6%, Other:2%) * 22% Zen Buddhist * 8% None * 6% Jewish * 6% Other * 1% Satanic The intitial band of Dolgarian travellers led by Bryce Leigh I were predominantly Zen Buddhist and set up the nation to encompase both their spiritual and economic beliefs. Yet as word of this 'island paridise' spread more and more began leaving the homeland in what has become known as the Dolgarian Exodus. Naturally this contained many Christians who soon set up the Church of Keymon along Calvinst lines. Christiantiy is now by far the largest belief in Keymon with the majority belonging to the Church of Keymon. However a substantial amount now subsribe to the Church of Keymon (Reformed), a more liberal organisation formed in 2160's in response to the hardline conservative approach of the COK. The remaining Christians are largely Terran Catholic, with the majority coming as Deltarian refugees. There have been minimal clashes between the COK and Terran Catholics in the past yet these are rare occurances now. Netherless Terran Catholics tend to live in isolated communities and rarely marry non-Catholics. The next largest religion is Zen Buddhist which, despite being marginalised, remains a strong force in Keymon. The religion is led by Official Zen Committee of Keymon (OZCK) which is responsible for appointing the Supreme Patriarch of Keymon and for maintaining the majority of Buddhist temples in the nation. Pressure groups also exist such as the Revolutionary Committee of Natural Law. This organisation was formed by William Kerouac in 2164 around the same time as the Church of Keymon (Reformed), as such the 2160's have become synonymous with religious progression. The RCNL is now affiliated with the Zen Collective, a political organisation of left wing Buddhists. The current Supreme Patriarch of Keymon is His Holiness Thibau Mingyinyo who was appointed after the death of His Holiness Tep Vong during the 2nd Keymon Civil War. Judaism did not begin its spread into Keymon until around about the 2140's when long persecuted immigrants from Majatra began arriving as well as liberal thinkers from Beiteynu. The Jewish population suffered under the fascist rule of the National Front but since then has recovered well. The final major religion represented in the most recent census (apart from Atheism) is that of Satanism. For many in Keymon this is a touchy subject and if you ask a Keymonian about the Satanists in their nation they will normally reply with a comment such as "That's a bit of a derogatory way to talk about the Buddhists." However it has been estimated that 1% of the population, overwhelmingly existing in shut off communities, practices Satanism. Ethnicity * 67% Dolgar * 10% Likaton * 7% Other * 6% Keymonite * 6% Jewish * 3% Deltarian * 1% Majatran * Dolgar: This is both historically and currently the largest ethnic group in Keymon. The Dolgars of Keymon descend from the original travellers that came with Bryce Leigh and those of the Dolgarian Exodus. * Likaton: The second largest ethnic group in Keymon, these are the descendants of Likaton immigrants as well as current immigrants. The high prescence of Likatons in Keymon has led to claims that the island is actually part of a Greater Likatonia and conflicts, such as the Crisis of the 2260's have occured. * Keymonite: This is a disputed term used to describe those who are half Dolgar and half Likaton. * Jewish: This is used to represent all those in Keymon that practice Judaism but additionally see themselves as a distinct ethnic group. * Deltarian: Largely poor and Catholic, due to the repressive nature of the Deltatrian state many have left it to find better lives. As such many have found their way to Keymon. * Majatran: Used to represent the indigenous Majatrans that have found their way to Keymon. This encompasses both the few fishermen that were rumoured to have settled in Keymon prior to the arrival of Bryce Leigh I and those that travelled to the island post 2103. They are very small both in number and political representation. It should also be noted that due its position as a neutral free trading nation numerous other ethnicities and nationalities are represented in Keymon. This is also stems from its history of limited immigration restrictions as well as it being situated relatively near to major confilicts. Linguistic Makeup The original travellers of Bryce Leigh I and his companions were native speakers of Telamonese, the national language of Telamon and one of the official languages of Dolgaria. The language spoken by most Dolgars today is in effect a variation of original Telamonese, not so much in the pronunciation but in the way that words from other languages have been incorporated into it. This however is not the case with the Grand Duke himself as well as his mouthpiece the Keymon Ruling Party who speak the original Telamonese. Due to the fact that words from this original language have been dropped by many future generations in favour of foreign words, this has led to confusion in some of the Grand Duke's official speeches to the nation and it is predicted that if the current trend continues then in 50 years time children will not be able to understand the language spoken by the Grand Duke. In addition to this, the many minorites of Keymon each speak their own languages. Public Holdiays External links * Keymon's Particracy Page * Keymon Press Agency - International Bulletin Category:KeymonCategory:Nations